Bump... Rusty?

Yes Sir, right here ready to help.........

buy the best mask that fits your face well, and give the best visability all around up and down, I like black skirts myself, less reflections and distractions.

Do a web search on different reviews. lots of good info out there from professional testers.

I'm REALLY liking my newest mask, the Tusa Visulator. I have 4-5 other masks as spares. My prior favorite was an Oceanic Shadow. Very nice even after 6 years of use, then the glass broke after I stepped on it during a suiting up "Accident" Crap, I loved that mask, but now I love my Visulator even better. The Mares X series is also something to look at, but whatever fits YOUR face is the "best" mask out there.

Any personal fitting items really MUST be tried on in person at your local dive shop, Mask/gloves/boots and for that matter snorkle and regulators all have different fitting mouthpieces.

support your local dive shop for these items. You'll need them for your local lessons anyways. You can rent the bigger $$$ items for a while, BCD and even regulator for that matter.


This is all supposed to be fun, there is no one "best" answer, and the interweb is full of people who all have their own opinion, for their own application.

I haven't found a shop that had that Mares yet... Hitting one in Tulsa over the break...

Wow... forgot to update this...

Anyways.... I LOVE my gear... Especially the Mares mask...

I had a little trouble with the swim test... Kicked its ass the second try though. We are done with the book and did total ditch and dons in the pool tonight... going on our outdive May 5-7th. I'm way excited.

Bump again...

After a full year of not donning a suit, I will be starting to gather gear again over the summer! I am going back for my Rescue diver! For the college course I will need a compass, light, knife, and maybe another goodie or two..

Considering picking up a Henderson wetsuit as well....

I think we need to start planning a Pelican Dive Trip in a few years....

4 way stretch henderson 3mm/2mm full length suit is my tropical wetsuit. DUI CFX200 dry suit for puget sound.

Wristmount compass is nicer than a console mount IMHO.

Knife, get a SMALL blunt tip, you don't want or need a Rambo sized Machette blade.

Buy the best best most expensive light you can afford. I have some small C4 LED ones I'll make you a screaming deal on, as I don't use them anymore. AquaSun blows away my Light Canon HID, both are super bright crisp white light though. Don't even think about standard bulbs or even Xenon. Rechargable batteries are a must.

Underwater Kinetics AquaSun eLED Rechargeable Dive Light

A buddy of mine has a 7mm Henderson. Most of the water we dive is in the 60 degree range...

I've got you a 7mm wetsuit I'll sell you cheap too. Farmer John bottoms and jacket top. Maybe 6-8 dives on it. Fits me at 6' ~240 lbs.

Puget Sound is 48-50F. If you're going to go often in 60F, go drysuit. You stated though that you haven't dove in a year though. You might just want to rent then.

USIA make nice economical drysuits, ~$1000-1200 range. Watch OUT for buying used, as zipper replacement alone is $400+ and neck and wrist seals replaced isn't cheap either.

I'll pick up a suit to wear in the pool. 2hrs a week and I get cold....

I'm 6' 140. Finding a suit is tough....

if YOU really think about this.................just where in hells name is a wet suit going to be comfortable????????????????



you have a few choices:


hawaii-1/2mm

carribean-1/2mm

oz-1/2mm

south pacific-1/2mm

sea of cortez-1/2mm


all the above to avoid coral cuts,etc.



i know for a fact even in the summer off calif. its cold as hell AT DEPTH let alone pudget sound,washington.




for ANYWHERE ELSE quit stroking yerself and spend the bucks for a DRYSUIT!



you will thank me. ask me how i know. been diving since i was 17. im 53 now. do the math. thats 36 years now.



a DRYSUIT IS THE ONLY WAY TO GO!




literally year round diving anywhere including under ice if ya spring for a full face mask like my scuba pro.

if really damn cold , use thermal underwear. it iz the katz azz!


i bought mine thru USIA. mucho choices of colors.



if yer a secret squirrel...................even have multi camo ones.



since i AINT a SECRET SQUIRREL i opted in my infinite wizdumb of worst case scenario of being left by a dive boat floundering offshore a few miles, TO BE SEEN!


hence blue and INTERNATIONAL ORANGE!



the smartest thing i ever did diving. wez dont care how cold the water iz anywhere!



always bring mucho baby powder for donning. no fuss no muss getting in and out.



being on the edge of, if not downright getting HYPOTHERMIC can really screw yer dive/day/week/month/year/life up.



worth every damn penny X 1-BILL-YON!


one and ONLY drawback.................it is another bag to hump on a plane.

p.s. i sprung for a scubapro 1/2mm specifically for tropic areas. all it takes is one swell in a shallow area, the current etc to shove you into a rock/coral. and as we all know blood anywhere diving just downright sucks. especially hawaii with freeking hammerheads/tigers and the same in the sea of cortez as well as the carrib-bean.



i have not worn my poseidon wetsuit in years. flat got tired as hell of freezing my butt off.



and all it takes is one lil itty bitty piece of jelly fish to TOTALLY screw up yer day also.




about the only place i dont wear any suit is lake powell in the summer when we have gone there.



remember diving is just like flying. wanna beez jump in with more money than brains. buy all sorts of high end gear, get the crap pounded out of them on a surf dive, see a shark and poo themselves, have a equipment malfunction etc. and then run home to mommy squealing like lil pigs and then sell all their gear for pennies to the benjamin.


sooooooooooooo..........................LOOK FOR A USED DRYSUIT DIRT CHEAP!

At 6 foot 140 you're a skinny dude, who most likely will get cold.

One downfall of a dry suit, is when you have to peee.

If you're just doing pool time, Craigslist is your friend, as chlorine is hellllllll on gear.

For tropical diving, everything Weasel saids is correct, it's not just for thermal protection, but for stinging critter protection, sun burn protection, and so on. Wearing a lyra skin under a 3/2 mm long wetsuit for ease of donning/removal is the way to go.

keep searching on craigslist:

oklahoma city all for sale / wanted classifieds "wetsuit" - craigslist

high dollar gear to key on that ALWAYS is the 1st to go after some wanna-bee poos himself silly after seeing a seahorse or a moray eel,or gets seasick in 6ft swells(thats when its just getting good trust me:


dive computers

dry and wetsuits especially after a few years of eating twinkees and ding dongs and GETTING FAT! classic garage sale item along with excercisers.

b.c.s buoyancy compensators- ZEAGLE ARE HOT POO! the shizz ninny.


fins mask snorkels usually are kept for working on pools at home and telling all their neighbors they used to be U.S.N. SEALS after a few drinks.

DIVE CAMERAS! look for NIKONOS IV w/strobes and NIKONOS V's w/strobes.



i havent been around the world diving but i have been to:


hawaii numerous times

sea of cortez numerous times

lake powell and lokal lakes

pudget sound-3 times

southern calif numerous times

lake tahoe 3 times

and the best of the best of the BEST so far.....................BARBADOS!



you aint seen a reef/wreck until you have dived off of BARBADOS! mucho wrecks and they ALWAYS GIVE ME A CHUBBIE!


27 turtles in (1) dive. flat azz the coolest/best vizability diving i have EVAR DONE! and during hurry-kane season its DIRT DAMN CHEAP(september).



if i could pull of a ice dive in the arctic or antarctic i would in a HEART BEAT!

I would like to pick up a dry suit... But for as little as I am diving right now, I will stick with a wet suit....

M & B Wet Suit Design (M&B Wetsuits) - Long Beach, California (CA) | Company Profile


best custom wetsuit builder in the country that i could find

he'll send you a detailed build form

he's built 4 of them for me and a few for friends


if off the rack crap is good enough you don't need him

An XS henderson is tight, but keeps me warm...

I may give them a call when I get close to ordering though, what kind of money are we talking though?

Dry vs wet

it depends on what type of diving you do besides convience and creature comforts



and where did i get my rants. I started free diving at 10 and I'm 62 now.. Living on a sandbar forever may have had something to do with it

Wet for now. Like I said, as much as I would love a dry suit, I can't justify the expense....

wetsuits shouldn't be tight as it thins your insulation

if the Henderson is good enough save your bucks. M&B prices are at the top end of off the rack suits. His rubber is personally picked off the rolls. Many Calif spearfishing guys use him besides people who are built different than "normal"

I'm the little guy in the pic. I'm thin and wear a hat on the street when it's below 50F and wear silk thermals when below 40F. I get cold. Also I have the only hooded shorty in the Carib when I'm down there.



http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1302650767.jpg

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1302650901.jpg

Picked up an akona farmer john 6mm on craigslist. Was advertised for $85, but I guess they liked me, and I got the suit and the 7mm harveys hood for 45. The hood is a M, and a bit tight, I'll sell it to a classmate and get a bigger one....


http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1312069859.jpg

Stupid iphone photo....

Always remember dive gear is life support equipment!!! If it fails you may die rather suddenly and unpleasantly. I never use rental gear except for tanks and weights and get my stuff checked yearly by a competent dive shop. I use US Divers gear and a Widolf full face mask. Been at it since 1973 and still here.

Nice trim and horizontal buoyancy skills in your photo!


Anyone interested in UK HID Light Canon dive lights? I have two for sale at $100 each, pistol grip, black housing. Never flooded. Work fine, I just upgraded...........$10 flat rate shipping USA and I take paypal.

These lights ROCK and punch through even the murky green puget sound.

Underwater Kinetics UK Light CANNON Handheld HID Light - Neon Yellow

I also have some C4 eLED dive lights if interested, PM me if you rock a great deal on awesome dive lights

I may be dave... I need a light for sure...

How's the battery hold up on the light cannon v. the LED lights?

I can't see the full story, what happened?


And why did you feel the need to post this?

another dead diver

some divers may be interested on the action doing one of the most radical wreck dives in the country

do a google

The light cannon has been a long long long mainstay of the best dive dive light for the buck, bang for performance without getting in the tech diver realm of a canister light with seperate head light unit on the back of your wrist.

You can get an honest long 3-4 dives out of a set of batteries. so I'd say a 4-6 hours burn. That said, They take 8 C-sized batteries, but I had upgraded them to the recharge-able UK Ni-CAD pack, So I just charged them overnight after each day of diving.

I'll include the ni-cad pack and charger for an extra $50, these battery packs normally retail go for about $125-140.

I'l be honest, "some" of the LED lights out there are amazing, but you're going to have to pay $250-400 to match the HID light intensity of the light cannon.

I'm in no rush to sell, may use these twin Light Cannons as video lights. I also just checked 'em both out and they fire up and work fine. Correcting an earlier detail of mine, one of the housings is Yellow, the other housing is Black. So you're choice, or buy both at this killer price and sell one to a dive buddy.

PM me if interested and I can ship USPS flat rate this week. Should be able to fit both dive lights in a $10 flat rate USPS box


AND YEAH, Ronnin was a douche diver for arbitrarily throwing in a Divers Death story. so of course I was going to add in an New York located Auto Accident article, but when I googled "New York Auto Accident", the first 5+ pages of googles listings all were ambulance chasing money grubbing jew lawyers trying to make a buck for themselves. Not one news artilce shows up, only lawyers............at least divers enjoy the fun thrills of live, instead of sucking blood out of a turnip. "Yo Vinny, looke at dat Mercedes all crumpled up, I'll take dat vun, one, you represent the Geo Metro owner that is the stain on the side-walk.

Ok I need to pick up a primary and secondary light, a compass, and possibly a knife....


Still got those lights dave? I may be interested. Any recommendations on the compass and or knife?

I'm still using the same UK D8 that ive had for 25 yrs. as my primary. I carry 2 Pelican Sabrelights as backup.

My knives are an older wenoka as primary, and a wrist carry cheapo as a secondary.

Sidney, it is a great sport and please enjoy.

Many members of my family scuba and we have had no problems (I'm too claustrophobic and prefer to snorkel).

Some people think I am crazy for swimming in the scary open ocean (JAWS!)

However if you get careless scuba can be dangerous... things can go really bad really fast.

Please be careful.

I knew that guy. A couple of my friends were running that expedition.
Never figured out what happened.
I've done some serious deep wreck penetrations.
AD is a serious serious dive.

A bunch of yrs back. I had a "slight mishap" diving on the USS San Diego off of LI. Scared the crap out of me. Kept me out ogf the water for a few months, but got back on the horse.

Yeah, I got DCS on a dive off of the SC coast working on "Search for Sunken Warships" with Danny Crowell a few years back. Chamber ride at Duke. Plukin gas analyzer out of calibration.
Get back in, breathe deep.
:)

Glad things turned out good Dan.
I ran out of air doing a penetration. I was on my second dive, I couldnt squeeze into a spot with doubles, so I was diving on a single 80, with a pony. Was just supposed to be a quick one to recover a few rifles in the armory room. Misjuged my air. By time i got my buddy i started to black out. I panicked ,grabbed his octo instead of mine. Took air and a mouthful of water. Ended up doing an EA. knocking people of the anchor line on the way up. Not a good day.

Yeah, that'll soil a wetsuit pretty well...
I've had a few misjudgements in my time too. Like riding a motorcycle, if you dive enough it's not if, but when. Best thing is to be as prepared as possible...

I don't like the idea of penetrating wrecks or caves. I don't even like the idea of doing those Caribb overheads with anyone else, even the DM. Tourists are a prob waiting to happen imho.

one day a few underwater rescue guys grab me and said "What do you think makes a good diver?'

without much thought..... "When you've been dragged over the coals and survived a few times you get to the point where you get to believe the ocean doesn't want you. When the next near panic situation happens you're relaxed. That's what makes a good diver." Needless to say they just quieted down and wandered off.

different strokes.......

Good answer.

[QUOTE=RoninLB;6228216] "When you've been dragged over the coals and survived a few times you get to the point where you get to believe the ocean doesn't want you. When the next near panic situation happens you're relaxed. That's what makes a good diver." Needless to say they just quieted down and wandered off.
QUOTE]



Excellent advice and insite.

I'm closing out a 2 week trip in the Philippines right now, heading through Manila tomorrow then 18 hours of airplane ride home to USA.

I did 38 dives in 11 days, Wanted to break 40 dives but a head cold slowed me down. I love that quote above, "when near a panic situation you're relaxed". On the 3rd or 4th dive of the day, found myself all alone at 105 feet as I'm a U/W photographer and everyone else moved on 50-100 feet away while I paused for some awesome macro pics. For the first time in 1000+ dives I found myself anxious as I was all alone at DEPTH. Sressed out but dealt with it, Started breathing too fast and got myself into a mental mind-knot. "What if this and What if that happens??????" Checked my gauge and still had 1800 psi left..............no worries no worries.............during my Instructor course, my Director drilled into us, "if you still have air, you're golden". Work through any issue that comes up, but if you've got air, you're fine. I caught up with the group and finished the dive fine, a bit rattled, but fine. Overheads and cave diving, no worries, it's your equipment and dive skills that count. I picked up a nice shell on that dive, to remember that rattled scared feeling. Lessons learned. Don't become Complacient.

The mental aspect of diving is much harder than physical. You can work yourself into a panic wayyyyyyyyyyy to easily. I calmed myself down, (was a little narked at the time...:D)

That's why I won't ever sky-dive out of a airplane, you can't argue with gravity, but you can make it mentally through a challenging dive.

I'll post a new thread of Philippine dive photos, got 2000 of them on the lap top to sort through, and have some serious Muck Diving stunning shots of critters 1/8" big, or the size of the ? Question Mark on your keyboard.

Yes I still have my Light Canons HID dive lights for sale, got to get home first but I'll send you a PM in a couple days.

I'm just getting into diving -- finished my basic open water dive quals with PADI about a month ago. Now I'm looking for reasonable deals on the gear that I need and I'm hunting for dive trips that won't cost me an arm and a leg.

That's the real trick: finding reasonably decent dives that don't require me to get on an airplane. Maryland is great for the traffic, weather, and temperament of the local population, but there's not a lot of good diving here. :(((

Dan